


I Will Go Down With This Ship

by AlaskaMarina



Category: Glee
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Human Blaine, M/M, mermaid kurt, mermaid!kurt
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-12-10
Updated: 2018-02-19
Packaged: 2018-02-28 21:54:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2748476
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlaskaMarina/pseuds/AlaskaMarina
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sailor!Blaine meets Mermaid!Kurt. When Blaine's ship is attacked by killer mermaids, he is sure he will die too. But a certain merman takes a liking to this beautiful human. Klaine AU. (Not a Little Mermaid crossover)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Sound of Death

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Link for the song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLvGzQc7y6s)

The storm came out of freaking nowhere. One minute, it was a clear, idyllic day. A little windy, perhaps, but nothing worrisome or even inconvenient. Certainly nothing to portend the horrific maelstrom that was about to descend. And the then the next minute,  _boom_ , it seemed they were battling against the unbridled rage of Poseidon himself. The sound of the deafening thunder claps rolling across the sky was rivaled only by that of the booted feet stomping, squeaking, and slipping across the rain-slicked decks as dozens of frantic deckhands scrambled to wrangle the wayward ship back under control.

Through the cacophony of the thunder, pouring rain, crashing waves, strained yells and general panic, Blaine struggled to make out his superior officer who was currently shouting orders in his face. He may as well have been speaking Mandarin for all Blaine could understand him.

Somewhere across the deck, a rope snapped and whole new bubble of hysteria burst into existence around it. Blaine and several others scrambled over to help before the spar collapsed. Blaine was just belaying the line when he heard it.

Against all logic, above the thunder, the rain, the waves, the groaning ship, and the throaty cries, floating through the chaos, clear as day, he heard it.

The singing.

But calling that beautiful hum singing was like calling the ocean damp. It was ethereal, and melodic, and enticing, and just so many other things Blaine didn't even have a word for. Such a glorious chorus of voices blending together so perfectly as to seem almost as one. It was the sound of the angels.

The downhaul slipped from someone's hands and the spar came crashing downward but no one even moved. The men were frozen in place, mesmerized by this unearthly tune.

As the hands stood, petrified, staring off into the turbulent blackness, the vocals grew louder. Blaine started to make out the rise and fall of the tones.

The melody was sweet, yet forceful. Heartbreakingly sad, yet irresistibly hopeful. The duality alone was overwhelming. Blaine felt tears brew in his eyes.

Slowly, as the voices grew louder, closer, the men began to make out individual words, delivered to their impatient ears on the back of the wind.

" _Take my breath awaaaay,_

_Take my breath awaaay,"_

Blaine felt that sentiment was eerily accurate. He didn't think any of them were breathing anymore.

And that's when they saw her. Blaine felt her presence before he actually turned to look, and when he did…  _holy shit_.

Now, Blaine had a secret. And his secret was that he was Kinsey 6 gay. He'd know that since childhood, even if he didn't advertise it for fear of the inevitable persecution. But despite that, not even he could help but be blown away by the ethereal beauty of the woman that was now perched atop the port-side railing of the Dalton.

When Blaine recalled what little he could of the incident later, he would realize that this (as well as a great deal of other things) should have given him pause. The rail of that part of the ship was a good thirty feet above sea level, not even bringing into account the novelty of what a woman was doing out in the middle of the raging sea, miles away from any land.

However, none of this absurdity registered with Blaine or with any of the other sailors at the time, so entranced were they by the magnificence of this temptress.

Simply put, the woman was absolutely stunning. Her skin was creamy and flawless, and seemed to positively glow in the darkness around her. Her white-gold hair was cropped short and shone brightly with its own radiance as the wind whipped it, like a halo, about her angelic face. Her eyes were gorgeous hazel-green. Gold from the sun bouncing off an icy sea. Her cheeks were rosy, her lips were full and plush, her features were sharp and elegant, and her nose was absolutely perfect.

The only thing she wore, as far as Blaine could see, was a silky strip of cloth, as white as light the from the moon, tied loosely across her chest. Only her top half was visible, but the rest of her skin was as pale and smooth as her face. Her body was slender and toned, her movements graceful and controlled. She moved like fluid, floating in the night, commanding the very air around her to shift and make way for her supple limbs.

The woman smiled softly and the men around Blaine let out small sighs of desire. She raised one elegant eyebrow and,  _Jeeze_ , Blaine may not have been into girls but he wasn't a moron. He knew sexy when he saw it. Blaine looked around and was suddenly really,  _really_  glad he was gay because everyone else on board seemed to have completely lost control of their faculties. There were all staring at her slack-jawed, wobbly-kneed, glassy-eyed, and drooling all over the deck. As if it weren't wet enough already from the rain. It was still raining, wasn't it? And windy as hell? That was still going on right?

Suddenly Blaine's attention was yanked back to the gorgeous woman as the sinfully beautiful hymn once again caressed his ears. The woman was singing. Had she been singing this whole time? Blaine couldn't remember. He suddenly couldn't remember much of anything. But slowly, the words began to take shape in his mind as he stared at the girl. Whose eyes seemed to pierce through the night, right into his soul, as she sang. And that was when he realized, as flawless as her appearance was, it was nothing at all compared to her  _voice_.

_"Watching every motion in my foolish lover's game,_

_On this endless ocean, finally lovers know no shame."_

Blaine felt his heart give a painful squeeze. God, there was no way this was real, was there? Suddenly, Blaine heard the smallest echo of a splash and he whirled around and saw yet another woman leaning over the railing on the starboard side. This woman looked nothing like the first, but was no less bewitching. If anything she was even more exotic.

The second woman had dark-olive colored skin, high sculpted cheekbones and arching eyebrows, pouty red lips, and long, flowing, dark hair that rivaled the blackness of the stormy night sky behind her. Her eyes were dark as death and her unwavering gaze sent shivers down Blaine's spine. Her blood red lips were parted as she sang. Her voice was strong and Blaine could feel the passion of a thousand years ringing out...

_"Turning and returning to some secret place inside,_

_Watching in slow-motion as you turn around and say..."_

_"_ _ **Take my breath away**_ _,"_ The two perfect voices joined together as one and Blaine's legs might have given out from under him had he not been rooted to the spot. His was mind was slowly turning to mush. Somewhere in the back of his mind he knew this was bad. He should be scared, right? Why wasn't he scared?

" _ **Take my breath away**_ _,"_

Suddenly, yet another woman popped up next to the second, hair long and golden like the sun, skin flushed and seemingly peppered with flecks of gold, body athletic, slender, and agile. Eyes a pale, icy blue. Her gaze landed on him and, suddenly, Blaine felt an overwhelming urge to help this girl. Like she was some sort of delicate, perfect thing. An innocent child, that needed to be cared for.

There was a beat coming from somewhere, a low, baritone sound, mixing with the girls' harmony. Providing the perfect ambiance to make their melody utterly inescapable.

The first girl took the lead again...

" _Watching I keep waiting, still anticipating love_ ** _,_**

_Never hesitating to become the fated ones."_

And then the second...

_"Turning and returning to some secret place to cry,_

_Watching in slow motion as you turn around and say, my love..."_

The third girl's voice joined chorus with the others and Blaine felt the numbing sensation grow even stronger.  _So beautiful... so, so beautiful..._

_"_ _**Take my breath away,** _ _"_

Then another girl popped up. And another. And another. And another. All over the ship. All leaning over the rails. All exquisite and alluring, and all wearing practically nothing. All singing together.

The dark haired girl continued to lead...

" _Through the hourglass I saw you,_

_In time you slipped away._

_When the mirror crashed I called you_

_And turned to hear you say..."_

Out of the corner of his eye Blaine saw the other men slowly gravitating towards the edges of the ship, drawn to the sirens. The women smiled enticingly, beckoning the men forward. Blaine felt his heartbeat race.  _No. Wrong._  He knew something about this was wrong but... god, it was just so lovely. Wasn't it?

The blonde sang again, the others starting humming along in the background. Blaine could feel his resolve breaking. But his resolve to do what exactly?

" _If only for today, I am unafraid..."_

No, he wasn't afraid. Why should he be afraid? Who could be afraid of something so beautiful? So perfect?

Suddenly, every last songstress joined in with the chorus. The sound was literally overpowering. Blaine could feel the notes radiating inside his very brain. Like he'd been standing inside a giant bell when it rang. He grabbed onto a nearby post for support.

" _ **TAKE MY BREATH AWAY,**_

_**TAKE MY BREATH AWAY,"** _

The men were completely captivated now, nearly every one ensnared in the arms of a siren. The women were grinning at them sultrily, but something twisted in Blaine's stomach when he met the brunette's dark eyes. Something about her felt... off... malicious. Her eyes were so cold... so cold...

" ** _Watching every motion in this foolish lovers game,_**

**_Haunted by the notion,_ **

**_Somewhere there's a love in flames._ ** _"_

The brunette cocked her head and stared at him, paying no attention to the sailor she held fast by the collar. If Blaine didn't know any better, he would have sworn she looked sort of frustrated. Almost... angry.

" _ **Turning and returning to some secret place inside,**_

_**Watching in slow motion as you turn my way,** _

_**And say..."** _

Was it just Blaine, or was that low beat growing louder? Closer.

" ** _TAKE MY BREATH AWAY,_**

_my love,_

**_TAKE MY BREATH AWAY..."_ **

He couldn't breathe. None of them could breathe.

" _my love,_

_**TAKE MY BREATH-** _ _"_

And that's when they struck.

Out of nowhere, the singing transformed into piercing, inhuman shriek and the spell was broken. The men cried out as the women tightened there grips on them and dragged them over the rails and into the thrashing depths. Blaine's eyes widened in shock as the girls pulled back their flawless lips to reveal razor sharp fangs. He watched in terror as the brunette dug her impossibly sharp nails into the sailor's back and ripped out two huge hunks of bloodied flesh, before biting ferociously into his neck.

Blaine gasped and stumbled backward in horror, and tripped over... _something_. He landed hard on his back and hit his head on something metallic and hard. His vision swam as the desperate cries of his crewman filled his ears along with that savage howling. Blaine jerked his head up, eyes wide with panic, as he felt something strong, sharp, and  _wet_ , grip the front of his shirt. He looked up and found himself face to face with the bloodthirsty brunette, her coal-black eyes staring into his hungrily, teeth bared, his friends' blood dripping from the corners of her mouth.

She let out a ferrel snarl and Blaine scrambled backward as best he could, hands grabbing madly for something,  _anything_ , that could be used as a weapon. His hand closed around something large and metallic, probably the same thing he'd hit his head on, and he swung it upward without thinking.

What turned out to be a lantern hit her square in the side of the head and the glass shattered all around, sticking in her lustrous, dark mane. She let out an angry hiss of pain and Blaine thought he saw a drizzle of blood trickle down her forehead, but he didn't stick around to make sure. The blow was sufficient to loosen her grip enough for Blaine to squirm onto his stomach and crawl like his life depended on it. Which it did.

Blaine scrambled on his elbows and knees through the chaos and the blood and the screaming and the pain throbbing in his skull until he reached the port-side rail. He yanked himself to his feet just as he heard a sickening  _CRACK!_

It took Blaine a moment to realize what it was, before he felt the deck groaning and splintering, and tilting beneath his feet.  _Holy Fuck!_  he realized, glancing around madly. They were tearing the ship apart! He had no idea how they were doing it, but there was no doubt about it. They were bringing the Dalton down.

Out of the corner of his eye, Blaine saw the innocent-looking blonde heartlessly butchering the captain and Blaine wasn't entirely sure he wouldn't throw up.

A large crack appeared in wood at his feet and he heard another terrifying creak. Much louder this time.

Blaine glanced upward in horror as he saw the main mast tilting and swaying dangerously. Cracks and splinters appeared all along it's length and Blaine knew the thing was going to fall. He turned and planned to run as fast could. Where to? He had no idea. And he never found out because at that moment he felt and iron-grip on his ankle and he looked down to see none other than his favorite brunette, hissing and cackling, and grinning wildly in victory.

Just as Blaine was certain she had him for good, he heard another deafening  _crack_. He looked up just in time to see the giant spar tumbling down toward him. Blaine leaned as far away from vampire-girl as he could as the monstrous pole crashed to the deck between them.

Blaine's ankle was freed but the rail next to him was crushed and Blaine felt the deck beneath him swaying dangerously. He lost his footing and reached out to grab for a hold but found only air. He slipped backward and found himself tumbling toward the heartless, demon-infested waves below.

He hit the water with a bone-crushing smack that knocked the air from his lungs and sent his head spinning and throbbing even more than it already was. He struggled futilely with current for a only few moments, choking and gasping, before he looked up and saw that the entire ship was tipping over. Right on top of him.

_SMASH!_

_Pain._

The world fell out of focus then. There were muffled sounds of screaming and wood creaking and rushing water and his entire body was weightless and heavy all at once. Everything whirled before his eyes. He felt cold and panic and nausea. Now more than ever, he was certain he was going to die.

But then, all of a sudden, he could have sworn he felt a pair of strong arms wrapped around him, tugging him against the raging current that was threatening to pull him under and keep him there. And moments after, he knew he was hallucinating. Because, in his last moments, a beautiful pair of bright, blue eyes filled his vision. Eyes every bit as striking and enigmatic as the feral waters attempting to smother his life. Blaine forgot he was underwater and gasped. An instant later, his world went black.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story is also posted on Fanfiction.net (under AlaskaMarina) and on my tumblr (Colfettegurl.tumblr.com)


	2. The Kiss of Life

Blaine couldn't breathe. He felt like he was drowning, floating in an enormous pool of tears.  _Tears_? He didn't know why tears, but that's what sprang to his tired mind. Salty and sad. Except he wasn't floating. He knew he wasn't floating because he could feel the roughness underneath him. It wasn't solid, exactly, but it was dry. Really, really dry. And  _hot_.

But he couldn't breathe. And he was pissed off because that wasn't a problem just a moment ago. A moment ago he was floating in the dark and nothing mattered and nothing hurt but  _now_. Now his chest was tight and his head hurt and he was hot _._ And he couldn't fucking breathe.

Blaine felt the pressure on his lungs increase and the water around him- no,  _in_  him?-moved uncomfortably. And Blaine tasted salt and warm and... something else. Something else that tasted really good. But Blaine didn't like what was happening. He didn't like it because it was drawing him out. Out of the darkness. Out of the place where he was floating. Out of the place where there was no pain.

His chest hurt. His head hurt. Everything hurt. And the ground was uncomfortable and hot.

And there was this horrible pounding on his chest. Rhythmic. Steady, yet somehow frantic. As if his chest wasn't sore enough already.

Pressure again. On his lungs and... on his lips?  _Oh yeah,_  he had lips, didn't he? Slowly, feeling began to creep back into his limbs. He did have lips and he had arms and hands and legs and feet. But he wished he didn't. He wished he couldn't feel them because they  _hurt,_  damnit.

Pressure again. Again. God, that  _taste_ , it tasted really good. Salty and sweet and warm and exotic... and god he wanted more of that. His lungs heaved a little bit, rejecting the air being pressed into them and the water in him sloshed angrily.

Pain.

But Blaine decided he would take it. He would wake up and let everything hurt if it meant he got to keep tasting that wonderful taste.

Pressure again. His chest heaved once more. This time his body got it right. The water in his chest was sent flooding upwards and Blaine coughed and sputtered, gasping as his airways cleared.

He sat up partway and leaned over, allowing gravity to assist him in the vital task of ridding his lungs of the foreign liquid. He coughed until the water was completely expelled from his system as he sucked in that sweet, sweet oxygen he so desperately needed. Blaine collapsed on his back, utterly exhausted.

He lay there with his eyes closed for moment, just breathing. Because he could do that now. He could breathe. And that was a good thing, right? There was something he'd wanted to be awake for. But he couldn't remember what that was.

He couldn't even remember where he was or how he'd gotten there.

Blaine curiously pressed his hand against surface he was stretched out on and found it was soft, warm, and slipped easily through his fingers.  _Sand_ , his mind supplied. _Ah_ , that would explain the heat. He was on a beach. Okay, one mystery solved.

Now for the rest. Blaine had a feeling he was going to have to open his eyes for that.

He took a deep breath to brace himself, and allowed his eyes to flutter open. He squeezed them shut again almost immediately because,  _damn_ , that was bright. He was on his back, staring straight into the sun. He shuddered as the pain radiated from his retinas and exasperated the headache he'd just remembered he had.

But there was another reason Blaine had closed his eyes. Another reason he was refusing to open them. And that was because there was  _no way_  he'd actually seen what he'd just thought he'd seen.

Blaine tried to think. He was delirious. It was perfectly normal to have hallucinations after almost drowning, right? He had no idea but it sounded at least mildly plausible. Far more likely than the alternative anyway. Blaine took one more steadying breath, then slowly cracked his eyes open halfway.

But the mirage was still there.  _He_ was still there.

_Oh_... Blaine couldn't think of an interjection potent enough to do justice to what he was seeing. He was completely stunned.

He was staring into the sun, that was true, and maybe that was affecting his vision, but Blaine seriously doubted it. If the sun had the power to create this kind of beauty, people never would have stopped worshipping it.

No, as impossible as it was, Blaine had to accept the truth: hovering over him was the most exquisite man he'd ever seen. In fact, he was so gorgeous, Blaine wasn't entirely sure if he  _was_  a man. Surely, perfection of this quality could only belong to the gods.

Everything about him took Blaine's newly-restored breath away. His young, cherubic face. His rosy, unassuming lips. How his skin was so pale and smooth as to seem almost translucent in the bright light of the sun. The color of his, damp, sandy brown hair, and the way it stuck out, almost comically, in every which way, somehow managing to make this adorable being look incredibly hot at the same time. The broadness of his shoulders, the strong, toned nature of his bare chest and arms as they held up his body. And, most of all, the way his eyes seemed to shimmer and change, shifting between all manners of blues and greens, harmonizing with the swirling ocean behind him.

He was the most beautiful thing in the world.

And Blaine suddenly realized he'd been wrong. He wasn't awake. No, that was impossible. He was still passed out. Possibly dead. Drowned. Yes, that must be it. He'd drowned and now he'd gone to heaven. Or hell. Or wherever. He didn't care. Wherever he was, whatever he was, he was thrilled to be there. Here, he was blessed with the sight of this amazing creature and he would gladly just lay there staring at him for the rest of his existence.

The man- boy, really; he did look so very young- tilted his gorgeous head to the side and raised a slim, elegant eyebrow. His expression was impenatrable, but, if Blaine had to guess, he'd say he looked rather intrigued.

Blaine swallowed nervously and slowly shifted, careful not to make any sudden movements, until he was propped up on his elbows. The mysterious boy backed up to make way for him, never breaking eye contact. Blaine let his eyes wander down the other man's body. The boy's chest was bare, -as was his own, he noted offhandedly- toned, broad and as pale as his perfect face. The castaway took a few seconds to regather his thoughts as the sight had done an A-rate job of scattering them across the shoreline. After a moment, Blaine allowed his eyes to flicker lower and his heart nearly dropped into his stomach.

_Jesus Christ._

There, just below the boy's navel, where his hips should have begun, were  _scales_. Bright, glistening,  _fish_  scales. Rows upon rows of them, emerging seamlessly from the skin at his waist and extending downward. They ranged in color from brilliant gold, to a deep, radiant red, with every shade of yellow and orange in between. They sparkled so vibrantly in the hot light of the day... it was like staring into a the heart of sunrise. As Blaine followed the endless stream of scales downward, he saw they finally culminated, after maybe eight or so feet, into an enormous fish tail.

The realization hit Blaine like a tsunami. This boy was a  _mermaid_! No, wait…A mer- _boy_? What did you call a male mermaid? Mer-guy? Mer-male? Merman? Yes. Blaine decided 'merman' sounded the least weird. Not that there was anything about this situation that wasn't completely fucking weird.

Blaine looked up from the merman's tail and met his eyes. Those startlingly blue, oceanic eyes. And instantly, it all came flooding back to him in a rush. Blaine's eyes widened in dismay and he gasped.

The singing, the beautiful women, the screaming, the blood, the... _tails_. Yes, they had had tails. He'd been too infatuated and then too hysterical to register it at the time, but yes.  _Mermaids_. It had been mermaids that had destroyed his ship and massacred his friends before his eyes. Mermaids that had nearly killed him too. And there was one just inches away from him right now.

Panic shot through Blaine's body and he tried to scramble backwards, away from the stunning creature with the vicious intentions. But he was stopped when a pale hand shot out and grasped his leg with vice-like grip. Blaine's mouth dropped open in fear and a scream bubbled up from his chest.

But the cry died in throat, because just then, the merman spoke.

"Don't," he said, "You'll hurt yourself."

Blaine stopped. He sat there, wholly immobilized. He didn't even breathe.

He was completely terrified, of course. But it was more than that. It was so much more. Blaine had thought he'd heard perfection in the mermaids' twisted serenade, back before all hell'd broken loose. He'd been certain it was the most glorious sound he'd ever hear, even if he lived a million years, but no. He'd never been so wrong. This boy. This boy's throat was made of  _gold_. Every sound, every syllable, every breath that slipped past his flawless lips tugged at Blaine's heart, and sent a wave of warmth and light radiating through his whole body. His voice was high and smooth and sweet and unlike anything he'd ever heard before. Like a chorus of fine instruments all on its own. Just a few simple words had him paralyzed.

The voice's owner was looking at him with a mixture of caution and intense fascination. Blaine felt the boy's grip tighten on his shin, twisting it slightly. By some miracle, the sailor forced himself to unfreeze long enough to look down. As Blaine's knee rotated inward, his outer, left thigh became visible, and, more importantly, so did the enormous, jagged slice of wood that was sticking out of it. The wound spread out along more than half the length of his thigh. The wood itself bore a dark red stain as fresh pockets of blood and puss oozed out around the edges of the intrusion.

Blaine sucked in a sharp breath. He felt it, then. The pain. God, how hadn't he felt it earlier? Like his muscle was on fire. Blaine squeezed his eyes shut. He couldn't look at it.

"I didn't know wether to take it out or not," the other boy admitted.

Blaine looked back up at him and fought down the panic rising in his chest. The merman still has his leg in a death-grip and Blaine didn't have a lantern handy this time. Plus, the boy actually had a point. He didn't think he'd be able to get very far with a burning leg, even if he'd been armed with a thousand lanterns.

"Does it hurt?"

Blaine stared at him. It took him a full minute to find his voice, once he realized the merman actually expected him to respond and  _wasn't_  going to jump on him and rip his throat out.

"Wh-what?" He whispered, still unable to believe he was actually  _talking_  to a homicidal merman.

"Your leg," the other boy clarified, "does it hurt?"

The merman was staring at the wounded leg in question, his head tilted to the side inquisitively. He raised his eyes to meet the sailor's, gaze expectant.

"I-," Blaine choked on the words on their way out. He wanted to look away, to get himself together, but he found himself frozen underneath the angelic boy's scrutiny.

"I-uh-w-...yes," he finally managed. It was true at least. It  _did_  hurt. A lot.

The other boy nodded slowly.

"Well, you did have a ship fall on you," he murmured, almost absentmindedly, as he bent his head to exam the wound once more. Except- no. No, he wasn't just looking at the fragment. He was looking at Blaine's  _leg_. Blaine realized at that point that his left pant-leg had been torn away just above the injury, presumably to expose the wound. The other boy was running his hands over Blaine's bare thigh and calf, over his knee, ever so gently, as though afraid he might break. All the way down to his toes. Marveling at the sight as though it was some strange exotic animal he'd never seen before.

Blaine had to admit, even through his fear, the boy's touch felt  _amazing_. His hands were so soft, and damp, and warm. So careful as they tenderly caressed his damaged skin. Worn and torn, both from his most recent misfortune and from many previous years spent in his line of work.

Blaine felt his eyes drifting shut before the merman addressed him again, "I got messed up, too. See?" The castaway's eyes widened as the colossal, shining, red tail entered his vision. Lifted off the sand and hovering at their head-height, twisting about a bit to reveal a long, deep scratch. "That's what I get for diving into a sinking ship, I guess," the boy said, rolling his eyes slightly.

Blaine stared at the massive, muscled, scaly extremity as it shimmered in the sunlight. His gaze flickered from the tail to it's owner, a thousand questions burning in his mind. But only one escaped through his lips.

"Who are you?" He whispered.

The merman raised an eyebrow as the daunting appendage returned to its place in the sand with a flop.

"My name is Kurt," he said.  _Kurt_ , the name sent tingles down Blaine's spine."And who are  _you_?" The boy leaned in slightly and the sailor's breath quickened.

"Blaine," he answered without thinking.

" _Blaine_ ," Kurt rolled the name around on his tongue and the sailor shuddered at the sound. "I like that," he breathed. He was still really close.  _  
_

Blaine suddenly felt nervous again. The merman was frighteningly  _right_ _there_ and was still holding onto his ankle. Images of the evil brunette poked at his memory. Sharp teeth, howling, blood. Blaine swallowed.

Kurt seemed to notice his discomfort. He paused, and looked at him speculatively for long moment.

"Are you afraid of me?" He finally asked.

Blaine's eyes flew up from where they'd been trained on the boy's tail to meet his cerulean eyes once more. The merman's tone was inscrutable.

"I-" Blaine tried to speak, but found the words stuck in throat. Kurt waited, his expression earnest. "I-uhm," he cleared his throat. He could do this. "I haven't had, uh, the best experience with, uh, with mermaids. Recently."

Understanding spread across the boy's features. "Oh, right," he said, "You think I attacked your ship?"

That sounded like a trick question, "I don't know," he said, "I just-  _someone_ did." Kurt looked more intrigued than offended, so Blaine kept going, "There was... a storm, and  _singing_ , and all these mermaids popped up and then-" Blaine broke off, the disturbing images flashing through his mind, "I- they were  _vicious_. They were ripping the men apart, and the ship..." Blaine trailed off. He looked up and found Kurt nodding slowly, lips pursed.

"Oh yeah," he said with playful annoyance, "That would be my sisters. They like to play with their food…" He rolled his eyes.

Blaine blanched, " _Food?_ "

Kurt looked at him strangely, "Of course," he said lightly, "Sorry about your ship and your friends but… we have to eat." He shrugged.

Blaine sputtered, his heart racing,"You… wha-…they… you  _ate_ -"

"Oh, no. Not me," Kurt amended hurriedly, raising his hands in defense. "I don't eat men… they taste all… _bleh._ " He shivered, sticking his tongue out in distaste. He looked as innocent as a five year old expressing his hatred of green beans. It was both the most adorable and the most terrifying thing Blaine had witnessed to date. "Human girls are okay," the merman continued with a shrug, "But honestly, we don't get a lot of those out here. I prefer fish. Sharks are my favorite."

"S-sharks?"

"Yeah. But my brothers and sisters… well, your friends are gone. Sorry."

He didn't look very sorry at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Review! ^_^


	3. The Blood of a Merman

Blaine sat there for a moment, trying to process everything Kurt was saying and found that he couldn't. All of his friends. Wes. David. Nick, Jeff, Thad…. All of them gone? Ea-  _No_. He couldn't even think that.

He shook his head. There would be time to process and mourn later, if (and that was a big  _if_ ) he made it out of this alive, and when there wasn't a cannibalistic merman staring down at him.

The merman in question adjusted himself slightly, his enormous tail dragging across the sand, and cocked his head to the side, studying him. Kurt's glasz eyes trailed up and down Blaine's body, before finally resting on his face, boring into him. Blaine shifted nervously, eying the other boy warily, "What?"

Instead of answering, Kurt dropped his eyes again to Blaine's torso and reached out a tentative hand. Blaine tensed but the merman didn't seem to notice. He rested his fingers lightly on Blaine's bare chest and traced them slowly over his body, his eyes sparking with curiosity and wonder. Blaine was too scared to move; he just sat there, watching. An involuntary shudder ran through his frame.

"I've never seen a human this close up before," Kurt confided, "At least not one…," he paused and unconsciously licked his lips, "… _intact_." Another shiver ran up Blaine's spine as he met Kurt's eyes. His heart was beating so loudly he was sure Kurt could hear it. Or at least feel it, seeing as his hand was still covering his sternum.

"Gl-glad to be of service," he managed after a moment, not entirely sure how to answer something like that.

Kurt's eyes flickered in surprise for a second before a huge smile broke out over his angelic face, transforming it completely. And, holy hell, if it wasn't the most gorgeous thing Blaine had ever seen.

"You're adorable," Kurt said, "I'm really glad they didn't eat you."

Blaine blushed a little, "Th-thanks." After a second, he decided now was as good a time as any to address the giant elephant on the beach.

"Why didn't they?" He asked quietly, eyes dropping.

Kurt cocked his head to one side, "Why didn't who what?"

"The mermaids," said Blaine, still staring at the sand, "Why didn't they kill me...Why," he took a breath, "Why did you save me?"

The merman was silent. He removed his hand from Blaine's chest.

Blaine looked up and saw the boy studying him intently, his head still tilted to the side.

"You did save me, didn't you?" Asked Blaine, his mind flashing back to those stellar blue eyes he'd seen moments before passing out.

Suddenly, Kurt looked down and nodded his head jerkily and...  _oh my god_ , was he...  _blushing?_

"So, then...why did you? -Not that I'm not grateful," he added hurriedly, eyes wide, "I am, really. Thank you. That is, provided  _you're_  not going to eat me. 'Cause that would kind of suck."

Kurt looked up. He still looked bashful, but there was an amused twinkle in his eye. "No, I'm not going to eat you," he said, "Although, you do look delicious. And you're welcome, I guess."

"I thought you said you didn't like men."

"I said I don't  _eat_  men."

Blaine stared at him. Was he...? No. There was no way. But... the way Kurt was looking at him...

Was the merman  _flirting_  with him?

Before Blaine could respond, he was treated to a sudden jolt of pain, upon his uneasy shifting, to remind him of his current ship a la leg problem.

He groaned, his face scrunching up in pain, as he squeezed the sand beneath him, frustrated that the sediment didn't offer more resistance. "Fuck," he gasped. The fire in his leg seemed to have gotten fed up with being ignored as it was now dancing around inside his muscle, burning with a vengeance. Blaine held his breath and bit his lip to keep from crying out.

He grit his teeth and fought to control his breathing until the flames had died down some. When he could look up again, he found Kurt staring at him with concern. And something else. The merman opened and closed his mouth several times as if debating with himself whether or not to say something. At last, he appeared to come to decision.

"If you come in the water, I can help you," he spoke hesitantly. As though apprehensive about Blaine's reaction.

"What? What are you talking about?"

"I can help you. With  _that,_ " Kurt replied simply, nodding toward's Blaine's infirmity, "If you can make it to the water."

What did he mean  _help_? Why the water? Blaine glanced from the merman to the crashing waves a few yards behind him, uncertainly.

"How?"

"I'll tow you."

"No, I meant-"

"I know what you meant," Kurt cut him off, his azure eyes locking on Blaine's, "There's just no good way to explain it. You're just going to have to trust me."

 _Trust_ him? Trust a  _mermaid_? A mysterious, wide-eyed, shark-eating merman who apparently had no problem with his siblings attacking, murdering, and  _eating_ ( _shudder_ ) an entire ship's crew? And all that aside, he didn't know anything else about this boy. And now he was being asked to put his life in his hands. With his leg like this, in the water he'd be completely helpless (not that he wasn't already helpless) and utterly at Kurt's mercy.

On the other hand, Blaine had to admit, he did seem...  _different_  from the others. At least from what Blaine had seen so far. This boy had quite possibly saved his life, so far had not eaten him, and was now offering to help treat his wound (could he do that?) While the other mermaids had attempted to do just the opposite. If he was going to trust anyone, Kurt might very well be his best- and only- prospect. After all, what choice did he have really? His options at this point were scarce to say the least.

Blaine stared up into the merman's icy blue eyes and felt a sort of warmth flood through him. And he found he did trust him. Okay... not  _trust_. He still didn't know Kurt, and trust takes time, experience, familiarity. But he felt like he possibly  _could_  trust him. Like he  _wanted_ to. Faith, Blaine decided, was a better word for what he was feeling. He was going to take a leap of faith with this man.

"Okay," he said.

* * *

 _No,_  Blaine thought, _no, no, no. Not okay, very, very NOT okay!_ If Blaine thought his leg was on fire before, it was a gentle tingling compared to what he was feeling now.  _I changed my mind. Why the hell did I agree to this? Jesus Fuck!_ The moment the salt water had invaded his wounds it was as if all of hell had broken loose inside his flesh. He would have screamed had he been able to get air in his lungs. As it was, he was thrashing about beneath the waves and swearing up a storm inside his head that could have rivaled the actual one that had landed him here in the first place.

"Calm down," Kurt's voice cut through his panic and reached his ears as clearly and easily as if they weren't underwater. Blaine blinked open his eyes until he could make out the merman's blurry figure, floating before him. The boy moved toward him and took Blaine's face in his hands. "You need to relax, Blaine," he said, locking his shocking blue eyes onto Blaine's hazel ones, "Or this isn't going to work."

Almost immediately Blaine felt the fear and agitation drain from him limbs as though Kurt's voice and touch were acting as some sort of balm. His was leg was still in flames, but somehow he didn't care as much. What was this boy doing to him?

Kurt gripped the sailor by his shoulders and pulled him upward. Blaine gasped as they breeched the surface and he sucked in the much needed air. "You okay?" Kurt asked when they reestablished eye contact. Blaine nodded, though honestly he wasn't sure. "Good," the other boy said, "Can you keep yourself afloat?"

"I think so," said Blaine. Kurt let go and almost at once Blaine felt himself disappearing beneath the waves. He tried to kick but his left thigh screamed in protest at his efforts. He felt the strong hands grip him again and pull him back into the air.

"No," he coughed, "I meant no."

"I can see that," Kurt said, biting his lip, "You're going to have to hold your breath, then."

"Hold my-"

"Take a deep breath."

Blaine quickly obeyed and the roar of the waves abruptly cut off as the sailor once again dipped beneath the heavy silence of the water. The liquid was cool against his scorched skin and Blaine could feel the merman's smooth, strong hands running along the muscles of his thigh, twisting it, slowly, gently. He blinked his eyes as best he could and looked downward, both curious and terrified as to what the other man would do next.

Kurt studied the wound for a moment longer and then, in a sudden blur, his arm shot forward and back, simultaneously causing an enthusiastic flash of pain to bolt through Blaine's frame. The sailor cried out, earning himself a mouthful of seawater. A moment later, Blaine saw the other boy was now holding something dark in his hand. He couldn't really make out it's shape, but when a crimson cloud bubbled up before his eyes he realized what must have just happened.

Blaine fought down his panic, keeping in mind that he was underwater and hyperventilating was not an option. Still, it was difficult to say the least and his lungs were already starting to burn with want.

Blaine squinted, struggling to see through the fog of blood and fear, and suddenly a chill shocked through his system that had nothing to with the cool ocean waves. Somehow, Kurt had...  _changed_. Gone was the charming, shy, adorable little mer-boy. And in his place was something far more sinister, and reminiscent of the carnivorous demons of the storm. Kurt's eyes were dark and his teeth and nails were sharp and pointed. Before Blaine could even think about totally freaking out, the boy did something that, if at all possible at this point, shocked him even more. Kurt brought his own hand up to his mouth and bit down and the heel of his hand. Hard.

Immediately, a shimmery, luminescent, ruby liquid emerged from his pale arm and drifted upward through the waves. Blaine was too stunned to react and could only watch, wide-eyed, as the other boy pressed his bleeding palm into the now-open gash on his thigh.

Blaine gasped, surrendering the last few bubbles of oxygen from his lungs. He couldn't help it. The sensation was like nothing he'd ever felt before. If he had to put words to it, he'd say it felt a little a bit like getting really drunk. Only,  _better_. Blaine felt like all of his insides were glowing. A wonderful, numbing, warmth was swimming through his blood stream from the point of contact of Kurt's palm on his thigh, washing away his pain, and filling his body with a pleasant tingling sensation. Blaine flexed his fingers experimentally, delighting in the blissful fuzziness of it all.

After a few moments, the tingling died down to a soft, cool, rush, as gentle and calming as the water surrounding him. The waves beneath his skin washed over and over the fire in his thigh, dowsing the flames, until nothing was left but a mild prickling. Blaine couldn't believe it. Just like that. All his pain was gone.

The sailor's head was just starting to swim from the lack of oxygen when the strong hands returned to his torso and the two boys breeched the surface once again.

"What...what..." Blaine gasped. His head was spinning. This was too much.

"Shh. Calm down. Breathe."

"What-what the hell?" Kurt was still holding him afloat as Blaine rubbed the salt water from his eyes. "What the hell just happened?"

Kurt smiled at him, bitterly. "Congratulations Blaine," he said, "you've just become part-mermaid."

* * *

Blaine stared at his leg in amazement. They were back on the shore, perched on a small outcropping of rocks. Blaine was sitting on one of the drier boulders while the merman rested his elbows on a neighboring rock, his long tail oscillating slowly beneath the waves.

The sailor ran his fingers over the fresh scar that had suddenly appeared where on open wound had been only minutes before. After Kurt had pulled him ashore, Blaine had watched in morbid fascination as the bleeding (his blood was  _glowing_.  _Glowing!_ ) had slowed, then stopped. The skin had scabbed over and stitched itself together before his eyes. And all in under an hour.

Any part of Blaine that still thought he was dreaming shut up after that. He wasn't dreaming. His subconscious wasn't nearly creative enough to conjure up something like this. That left him with only two explanations. One: this was real. Or, two (and far more likely): he was crazy.

It would be quite comforting and far easier to believe that he was crazy. That he was safe in a mental facility somewhere, strapped to a bed, with a morphine drip stuck in arm. Or running around this deserted beach, like a wild animal. Stranded here, isolated, for days, gone mad with the heat. It would be so nice to think that his ship had, in fact, _not_  been attacked by satanic and carnivorous merpeople, that his friends were still alive somewhere, that his body  _had't_  just defied the basic laws of biology and time and sense, at the hands of a gorgeous, sea-angel. With everything he'd seen and felt today, it would be so nice, so easy, to just let everything go and believe that.

 _But_.

But.

But when Blaine looked down into that same sea-angel's eyes, he knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that he wasn't crazy. No matter how impossible, how incredible, or how terrifying the past few hours had been, no matter how much he wished all of it would just disappear, he knew that this beautiful boy gazing up at him was real.

And more than that, Blaine  _wanted_ him to be real. He wanted it so badly that he was willing to concede that he  _was_  sane and to accept that all of those other horrific events had indeed happened. Simply so that this beautiful merman would exist. So that he would have saved him, touched him, talked to him, and healed him. Just so that he would be here, now, watching him with that soft smile on his alabaster face.

As Blaine stared into Kurt's deep, crystal blue eyes, he could see the truth there. He saw the magic and the wonder. He saw in them a portal into another world. A world full of mystique and the supernatural. One where the laws of nature, and science, and reason didn't apply. And Blaine was afraid.

Blaine was afraid he would loose himself in those eyes. Somehow, he knew he could drown in their depths just as readily as he could in the raging ocean itself. In less than a day, Blaine's entire world had been rocked off its axis and his perceptions of reality and life and truth all thrown into question. A question that might never again be answered.

And yet, if there was one certainty about which he was absolutely positive, one truth in which he could place all of his shaken faith, it was in the realization that this boy was real, and alive, and here. And Blaine Anderson owed him his life.

* * *


	4. The Bond of Strangers

The cerulean waves crashed softly against the rocks around them, licking at Blaine's bare feet and sloshing around the merman's pale waist, where he was half-submerged. Blaine closed his eyes and let the sound sooth him. He'd always taken comfort in the sound and motion of the sea, ever since he was a little kid.

The waves now were smooth and rhythmic, nothing like the terrifying violence of just a few hours prior. God, had it really only been that long? Not even a day earlier, Blaine had been happily going about his business on the Dalton as usual; dutifully laboring in the sun, joking around with his friends, contemplating plans for his next shore leave...

It all seemed like a lifetime ago.

"How do you feel?"

The angelic voice cut through his ruminations. Blaine opened his eyes and looked down. Kurt was staring up at him with wide, questioning eyes. Blaine swallowed, "I- I honestly don't know." Kurt smiled a little.

"Guess?" He prodded.

"Confused?" Blaine tried, "Dazed...overwhelmed...scared-"

"You're still scared?"

Blaine met the merman's eyes, "Yeah," he answered honestly. "Not of you, exactly, I don't think" he amended, "Just... of everything. Everything that's happened, you know? It doesn't make sense." Kurt nodded for him to continue and the worlds began tumbling out of his chest, panic-filled and beyond his control, "I don't know what's going on or what's going to happen. I don't know what you just did to me or who you are or  _what_  you are or where I am. Or if any of this is real or if I'm just crazy. I'm... I'm scared." Blaine swallowed and looked down, feeling slightly ashamed at displaying such weakness.

Kurt was quiet for a moment. "I'm not going to hurt you," he said finally.

Blaine nodded, "I know." At least, he was pretty sure he knew. He hoped he knew.

"And... you're not going to hurt me?"

Blaine barely managed to bite back his disbelieving bark of laughter. He _, Blaine_ , hurt  _Kurt_? The  _mermaid?_

"Are you serious?" Kurt frowned and Blaine realized that yes, yes he was.  _Oh._

"I couldn't if I tried," Blaine explained,"-Not that I would try!" Blaine added quickly at Kurt's unsettled expression, "I wouldn't! Of I course I wouldn't. Why would I want to?"

Kurt looked down,"I don't know. People do all kinds of bad things when they're scared." His voice was quiet. Blaine wondered if the other boy had had that sort of experience before.

"I'm not that kind of scared," said Blaine after a moment, "And even if I was, I don't think I would try to hurt you. You're all I've got right now." Despite the heat of the day, a chill settled over Blaine as realized how true his words were. He was all alone but for this boy who may or may not have had a hand in murdering his best friends.

Kurt moved until he could brush his fingertips against Blaine's. Blaine didn't pull away.

"I'm scared, too," the pale boy confided. Blaine's eyes widened in surprise.

"What do you have to be afraid of?"

Kurt pulled his hand back so he could better balance on the rock he was leaning on. He shrugged. "The same things as you, mostly," he said, dropping his gaze, "I don't know who you are either. I don't know if I can trust you or if I'm going to regret what I did. What I'm  _doing_." He bit his lip, "No human's ever seen a mermaid and lived to tell about it... at least not up close. I know for sure no human's ever been healed by a mermaid... I'm scared of what my family will do if they find out. I'm scared of what everyone else will do if  _they_  find out... I'm scared of where we go from here."

Blaine could only sit and stare in quiet awe as boy before him expressed his fears. His real,  _human_  fears, free from all shame or attempts at bravado or mystique. And Blaine realized, really understood, for the first time, that underneath that monstrous tail, sharp-teeth, magic-powers, and unnerving beauty, there was a  _person_. A young boy who was curious, brave, and scared and who might just be just as far in over his head as Blaine.

The sailor suddenly felt drawn to the merboy in a way that he couldn't quite understand. But it was a connection he didn't want to shy away from.

He waited until the mysterious boy met his eyes again. "So," he said finally, "Where  _do_  we go from here?"

"Well..." Kurt looked as uncertain as he felt, "We could go back to the beach for starters. Those rocks can't be too comfortable."

Blaine hesitated.

"What?"

"I'm... I'm just afraid, if I take my eyes off you, you'll disappear." Somehow, this fear, more than any of the other more rational ones, hurt to say out loud. But at the same time, it also seemed the most important.

But Kurt actually smiled at his words. That same breath-taking smile that made Blaine's traitor heat skip another beat. "I'm not going anywhere, Blaine," he said, "I've got questions too."

* * *

So, the two of them moved back to the sand, Blaine carefully picking his way along the slippery, lichen-spotted rocks and Kurt dipping under the water and reappearing a few feet from the shoreline only seconds later. Blaine finally reached the beach at the same time Kurt finished dragging himself mostly out of the water, with just the broad end of his tail flapping lazily against the wet sand and flirting with the cresting waves.

Blaine's leg only hurt a little now, it really just itched more than anything else, and he found it could support his weight with only the slightest of limps required on his part. He stepped off the last rock and hobbled over to where Kurt was waiting patiently, stretched out on the sand. He really looked so gorgeous like that. His pale, damp skin shining like smooth porcelain in the sunlight. The fiery red colors of his tail made even brighter, contrasting with the deep blue waters behind. Blaine shook his head and sat down next to the beautiful merman.

Of course, he was even more stunning up close. Blaine forced himself to look away.

His wayward glance happened to land on Kurt's gently shifting tail and he frowned.

"You're tail's healed," he blurted.

Kurt raised his eyebrows. "Oh yeah," he said, dismissively, "It does that." Blaine was more confused than ever. He quickly looked at the boy's hand and found that it, too, was scar-free.

"But, how?"

"I went in the water with you, remember? It only works in the water."

Blaine stared dumbly as his brain slowly put the pieces together. "That's..." he started, realizing the vast implications of what Kurt had just said, "That's... wow. T-That's amazing."

Kurt raised his eyebrows and smiled. "Yeah, I guess," he agreed, glancing at his own healed hand, "But what about you? How do you feel? You know, physically?"

Blaine mentally shook himself of the awe inspired by this latest revelation and thought about it, taking a quick diagnosis of all his body parts. "Fine. I think. Which is...weird."

"How come?"

"Before you... you did whatever, I was hurting all over. But now..." Blaine spread his arms to show how fine he was. Even his sunburn was fading away.

"That's good," said Kurt, "I think that's a good sign. It means your body's okay with it."

"Okay with...?"

"Mermaid blood," he suddenly smiled, "We're blood-brothers now." Blaine gaped at him and Kurt's dazzling smile fell. "What's wrong?"

_Blood brothers_ , Blaine thought. Two simple words he'd head often enough. Just not often together, at least not anymore. It was a child's phrase. Something little boys claimed when their summertime antics led to leaking cuts and finger-pricks and the fever of sophomoric ritual possessed their tiny minds. He and his childhood playmates had treated the "bond" is as something sacred, not to be ventured into lightly, never to be broken. Of course, Blaine was older now, he knew better. Hell, he couldn't remember the names of half his "brothers," but, still. The idea of having Kurt's blood  _inside_  of him, of his blood inside of Kurt. Of being connected in that way. It sent shivers up his spine.

"What does that mean?" He finally asked.

Kurt narrowed his eyes. "That we're bonded for life."

Blaine's jaw dropped.

"Oh my god, I'm just kidding!" The boy laughed, "It doesn't mean anything, silly. It's just something kids do."

Blaine let out a breath, "Oh."

"God, you should've seen your face," Kurt said, still giggling.

"Stop it," Blaine mumbled, embarrassed, but it was hard to stay sullen for long. The merman's joy was infectious. "But, really, though," Blaine ventured after a moment, "What does that mean? I have your blood in me? Is that... is that why I healed?"

Kurt nodded.

"But... how? Why?"

Kurt shrugged and stared at the sand. "I don't really know," he said quietly, all humor fading from his features,"It's just...something I've noticed that happens. I figured it was worth a try." Kurt poked nervously at the wet sand with his fingers. Blaine paused.

"...Are you okay?"

Kurt didn't answer right away. He kept poking little holes in the sand, keeping his eyes downcast.

"Kurt, what is it?"

"Are you going to tell them?" The merman spoke so quietly, Blaine wasn't sure if he'd heard him correctly.

"Tell who?"

"The humans," Kurt answered, finally meeting Blaine's eyes, "Are you going to tell them what I did?"

"What humans?"  _Everyone I knew is dead_.

"Any of them." The merman was looking at him so earnestly, his eyes begging, it seemed, to be able to trust Blaine the way Blaine had trusted him. "It's a secret, Blaine," the boy whispered, "I need you to keep my secret."

Blaine's insides grew warm at the faith he could feel being placed in him by this gorgeous, perfect creature. He found himself nodding.

"You can trust me." Blaine said, resolving to make his words hold true. The merman searched the sailor's face for a long minute, and then finally he seemed to relax.

"I know."

And so Kurt told him the story. About the time he'd found an injured dolphin, caught and bleeding in a fisherman's net. How'd he cut himself trying to free the poor animal and how he'd accidentally grazed the mammal's open wound with his own. How he'd watched their blood mix and the dolphin heal under his touch.

He told Blaine how he'd relayed all of this to his father who'd asked him to keep quiet about it. Who'd told him it was important this power remain a secret, even from their own kind. Humans already knew about the existence of the merfolk, no matter how discrete they'd tried to be over the years. If even rumors got out that mermaids had healing abilities, who knew what perils might befall them?

Images of mermaids being hunted down and trapped plagued Blaine's mind at the terrified look on Kurt's face as he spoke. He wouldn't put it past his own species to do something so cruel. To hunt down mermaids and harvest their blood the same way poachers hunted animals for their pelts or their horns.

Blaine promised he would never tell.

Mermaids, themselves, may trap and kill humans, but it was like Kurt said; they had to eat. Right?

"Do you guys..." Blaine started, but trailed off, unsure how to phrase his question without sounding accusatory.

"What?"

"Well... you said you eat sharks, right?" Blaine was still having trouble wrapping his mind around the idea of this innocent-looking boy taking on one of the most ferocious creatures Blaine had ever heard of. And  _eating_  it.

Kurt nodded.

"So... you can survive on just fish. And that's, like, that works?"

Kurt gave him an odd look, "Well, yeah."

"So then...why doesn't everyone... you know, eat fish. Why do you eat people?"

Kurt cocked his head, "Why wouldn't we?"

Blaine was too stunned to answer.

"Why don't all humans just eat plants?" Kurt elaborated at the sailor's baffled expression, "It's how it's always been. Mermaids were around long before humans, Blaine. My species has been feeding off yours since before mankind discovered fire. Since before they could even speak."

"But we  _did_  learn to speak," Blaine protested, "We learned to do all sorts of things."

"I know," said Kurt, "They teach us all about it in school."

Blaine blinked, a little thrown, "You go to school?"

"Don't you?"

Blaine paused. He hadn't been to school in nearly five years. Not since he'd run away.

"I used to."

"Well, I go to school," said Kurt, "They teach us our histories and we have stories about the humans too, and how they rose over thousands of years from brutal, mindless animals to creatures almost as intelligent as we are. In all our lore, you're the only species to ever do that." Kurt paused. "It's kind of fascinating actually," he added shyly, "those stories were always my favorites."

Blaine, himself, was increasingly fascinated. The merman's eyes lit up when he spoke of the world of humans, a world Blaine strongly suspected he had never actually witnessed for himself. A world he wondered after so fiercely, he was risking everything to talk to a human. And Blaine suddenly realized he'd been blessed with a unique opportunity. He was perhaps the first human in all of history to encounter the merfolk and live and, though his future was still in a frighteningly nebulous state, he was here presented with a chance no else had ever had before, and may never have again. They both were. A chance for each to learn about the other, about a creature so completely alien and intriguing, yet somehow still disarming and oddly familiar. Even if, as it probably should for both their sakes and that of their species, their meeting would always remain their secret, it wouldn't matter.  _T_ _hey_ would know. Their time here together would still be revolutionary. An unspoken legend for the ages. A collision of two worlds that might otherwise never have touched. A revelation.

Blaine once again found himself growing breathless.

"Tell me more," he said. And Kurt was more than happy to oblige.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Another update! Go me! ;)  
> Reveiw!!


	5. The Isle of Courage

 

Kurt talked a little about school and his classes, but when Blaine asked about his friends and siblings he trailed off into silent shrugs.

"Are you going to tell your family about me?" Blaine enquired after a quiet moment.

"I don't know," Kurt sighed, fiddling with a small shell, "It's probably not a good idea. I'm pretty sure nobody saw what happened. They most likely assumed you drowned. And I think it's best we let them think that." 

"What  _did_ happen exactly?" Blaine asked hesitantly, cautiously. He wanted the question answered, but part of him was reluctant to tread into such dangerous waters, terrified of what might be lurking beneath the surface. His memories of the incident were hazy at best and Blaine would just as soon leave them that way rather than find out in gory detail what had really happened to his friends. What had almost happened to him. 

But another, larger piece of him was dying of curiosity. He needed to know. Needed to know why his life alone had been spared. 

"Why am I still alive?"

Kurt shrugged, turning the seashell over in his hand, "Luck, I guess."

Blaine cleared his throat, face flushing red, "But you saved me...Didn't you?"

Kurt's eyes dropped, "Yeah, I did." He reached out and gently brushed the angry skin on Blaine's thigh, "Most of you, anyway."

Blaine flinched a little at the touch and the other boy pulled his hand away. It was still a little tender.

"Sorry."

"It's okay," Blaine breathed. Kurt didn't answer so Blaine swallowed and asked again, "So... What happened?"

Kurt bit his lip. "Santana got you," he explained.

"What?"

Kurt's curious gaze met his once more, "How much do you remember?"

_I remember you holding me. I remember your eyes._ "Not much. I remember the storm... and mermaids showing up and singing. The whole thing making me feel sort of... like they were sucking the will out of me or something." He shuddered, "I- I remember being attacked and...and this really evil-looking mermaid was after me and... I think I fell overboard but...I don't know... it all gets kind of fuzzy after that..."

"That  _evil mermaid_ 's not used to being thwarted, you know," Kurt interjected, "I'm going to have to deal with Angry-Santana when I get back home, thanks to you. Not looking forward to that."

"... sorry?"

"You should be. If you thought she was scary eating your friends alive, you ain't seen  _nothing."_ Blaine just stared at him in disbelief. Kurt stared right back, all traces of humor slowly fading from his features. He seemed to debate something for a moment before he finally sighed, "Oh, what the hell. I'm already dead as it is." He rolled his eyes before launching into his explanation.

"The boys and I were hanging back, like we usually do," he began, "We usually wait for the girls to do their thing and then we help scavenge..." He paused at Blaine's expression, "The, uh, well, whatever's left." He finished quickly and Blaine's eyes widened, "But we were watching. Well,  _I_  was watching. I don't know what the other guys were doing. And, well, I saw you." Blaine could feel the heat rising in his cheeks. He hoped Kurt didn't notice. "I sort of noticed you because... well, you seemed  _different_. It didn't look like you were... under our spell. As much as the other sailors...  _And_  I noticed you because you were really pissing Santana off," he added with a slight grin, "And anyone who can best Santana is okay in my book, even if they are human."

Blaine wasn't thrilled about the way Kurt said 'human.' It sounded an awful lot like a synonym for 'food.'

"So I was watching and the girls were singing and the boys joined in with their back-up vocals." Blaine vaguely remembered the low hum that had accompanied the mermaids' serenade. "They do that when they get excited," Kurt continued, "They say it's like a war-cry, but if you ask me it's just a bunch of hungry teenage dudes moaning for their dinner, " Kurt rolled his eyes. "...I never know what to do in those situations," Kurt added, almost as an afterthought. "My voice is too high to sing with the other guys most of the time, and I can't be out there with the girls..." He trailed off and shook his head. "Usually, I pick one group or another, but this time I didn't, I was distracted... " Kurt bit his lip and looked down, "I was just... _watching_." He took a deep breath, "When the girls attacked, I saw Santana go after you and I... I felt... something."

Blaine felt his heart rate speed up. Kurt nervously tightened his fingers around the seashell.

"I felt sort of... I don't know. I can't even... And then you got hit and and you fell overboard and I... I just..." Kurt squeezed the shell so fiercely that it cracked in two with a sharp _pop_ , "I couldn't let you  _drown_."

Blaine stared at the broken pieces of shell in Kurt's alabaster hands, processing. 

"Wait a minute," said Blaine slowly, "I- I was drowning. I was  _drowned._ I couldn't breathe. That part I remember. How...?" Blaine's jaw snapped shut as the realization suddenly dawned on him and he understood what the mysterious warmth on his lips must have been. He felt the heat rising on his neck. He dared a glance over at the merman who was staring at the rocks again, face beat-red.

Blaine's heart was hammering in his chest, "Did you...?" He trailed off, words failing.

Kurt's blush deepened even further, if that were possible, and he gave another jerky nod.

"You needed air," he whispered.

Blaine could only stare, his gaze now fixated on those, moist, plush, seashell-colored, perfect, lick-able lips. Suddenly all he could think about were those lips on his. About feeling them,  _tasting_ them, their softness, their warmth. He'd  _tasted_  that.

As Blaine fought to clear his head, the awkward silence between them lingered until the tension became unbearable.

"Do you guys even breathe air?" Blaine blurted suddenly. He frowned immediately after, and so did Kurt. It was kind of a bizarre question. Although, considering the circumstances, it could have been a lot worse.

"Um, what?"

Blaine stumbled a little over his words, "Um, well, you know, mermaids. You guys live in water and everything, right? I just didn't think, you know, I didn't know. If they, you... If mermaids could breathe air."

Blaine bit his lip to shut himself up. He wasn't usually one to ramble. But, then, the situation was anything but 'usual.' And the angel-boy was just making him so freaking nervous.

Kurt was looking at him curiously. "I'm breathing on dry land now, aren't I?"

"I, well, yeah," Blaine felt like a total idiot. He looked down, feeling Kurt's eyes on him.

The merman apparently took pity on him and decided to answer. "We need both, actually," he said, "air and water."

Blaine looked up in surprise.

"Oh."

"Yeah..."

"I- I didn't know that."

"I'd be amazed if you did. We don't normally go around sharing trade secrets with humans," Kurt frowned, "Come to think of it, we don't normally go around talking to humans at all."

"Do you talk to humans  _ever?"_

"No. No, not really. This'd cause quite a stir back at home if they found out."

Blaine nodded. He could only imagine the reaction back in the real world if he told anyone what had transpired here today. If anyone believed him, that is.

"Well, then," he said after a moment of contemplation, "We'd better make the most of it."  At that, Kurt's face lit up in his most dazzling smile yet.

And so they talked.

They talked about everything and nothing. The important and the nonsensical. About their hopes, dreams, fears and about the weather. 

Kurt told Blaine about his family. About his brothers and his sisters. About school and home. About his love of singing and his fascination with human clothing. He told Blaine how he'd even tried fashioning a garment of sorts for himself once, only to have it stolen and be mercilessly teased for it. He talked about sharks and how it was always great sport catching and killing them. Blaine was still having a tough time wrapping his mind around that one but, listening to Kurt talk, it was apparently a most enjoyable pastime with a delicious ending. 

And Blaine talked too. He told Kurt about how his father had gotten lost at sea when Blaine was eight. How he'd lived alone with his mother until she'd died four years later. How he'd snuck on board a fishing vessel that same night and never looked back. He talked about his friends and his passion for performing. He talked about his love of the ocean and sailing. How the sea had always seemed to call to him, how he couldn't imagine living any other life. 

They talked and they laughed and they joked and they sighed, stretched out next to one another on the cooling blanket of golden sand. And as the sun drifted lazily across the sky to kiss the water, Blaine found himself wishing he'd never have to leave this island. That he and Kurt could just stay here, frozen in this perfect moment forever. 

"Do you think this has ever happened before?" Blaine wondered aloud, wiggling his toes in the damp, squishy sand. 

"Has what ever happened before?" Kurt didn't break his gaze away from the gently crashing waves. 

"This. A human and mermaid meeting without trying to kill one another." 

"I don't know. I don't suppose we'd hear about it if they had." 

"True."

Kurt oscillated his incredible tail along the water's edge, a thoughtful expression on his face.

"What is it?"

"I did hear one story...We're not supposed to talk about it. I don't even know if it's true." 

"Tell me."

Kurt shook his head, "It's probably not true."

"Tell me anyway." Something in Blaine's earnest expression must have convinced him, because Kurt shifted slightly to face him.

"The thing you have to understand," Kurt began, lowering his voice like it was a secret, "Is that we don't always have tails. Sometimes we can grow legs."

Blaine's eyebrows shot up. Just when he thought he'd seen it all. Will-sucking melodies, killer mermaids, shifting blue eyes, magic blood. But _this_? Blaine shook his head, unable to process. 

"You can _grow_ legs?" He sputtered. 

Kurt nodded. "Once every full-moon if we want. Anytime after our two-hundred and twenty second lunar cycle." 

Blaine blinks, completely uncomprehending. Kurt gives a small smile. "It's about eighteen and half years," he amends.  

"Oh."

"There's this whole rite of passage thing when we turn eighteen, a big ceremony where we all grow legs. But it's just tradition. We don't keep them... Usually."

"Usually?" 

"Well, there's this story. About a boy. Way before my generation. The story goes he grew legs and decided he liked them. He never gave them up."

Blaine knew he was staring in disbelief, but there wasn't really a whole lot he could do about it.

"So... he, what, became human?"

Kurt shook his head again. "He was still a mermaid. But he could pass for human. The legend goes he deserted the clan, ran away to live with the humans and never came back." 

"Holy shit." 

"I know."

"I guess I can see why they wouldn't want to talk about that." 

"I know. It undermines everything we stand for. And can you imagine what would happen if _humans_ found out?"

Blaine could. He could imagine the witch hunts that would ensue were word to get out that mermaids could be walking among them. He shuddered even to imagine it.

"Anyway," said Kurt after a moment, "It's probably not true."

"Probably not."

It was getting dark, the sun slowly dipping below the horizon casting purplish hues across the sparking water and painting the shoreline in all manner of oranges and pinks. At the same time, the tide was rolling in. Blaine hadn't noticed it at first, but when Kurt splashed his illustrious tail in shallows he realized the sea was now mere feet away from his toes.

"I'm so glad I met you," said Kurt, eyes shining in the dying light, "I wish this day could have gone on forever."

He was reading Blaine's mind as easily as a book and he shuddered at the intensity of the connection. 

"But, I guess it's time to say 'goodbye'," Kurt sighed reluctantly as he turned around and started shifting back into the ocean.

"Wait!" Blaine called, "Where are you going?"

Kurt looked back at him, "Um, home? It's late. They'll be wondering where I am."

"But- you're just going to leave me here? I don't even know where  _here_  is." Blaine hated how needy he sounded. He wasn't even sure where the panic in his chest was coming from. All he knew was that something inside him was desperate not to let this boy out of his sight.

"We're in the Caribbean," said Kurt, "La Isla de Coraje. Merchant ships come by here all the time. You'll be fine."

"But-"

"I can't stay here with you, Blaine. Have courage."

Blaine tried to push down his rising fear.

"Will I ever see you again?"

There was a long pause.

"I don't know," said the merman, eventually, "...But I doubt it." He paused and met Blaine's earnest eyes, "Take take care of yourself, Blaine. I'll always remember you."

And with a splash, he was gone.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Been a long time, I know. Thanks so much to anyone still following! :) Review!


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